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MASTER OF THE LAZZARONI MADONNA – Active in Florence around …
See original version (French)
35
-
MASTER OF THE LAZZARONI MADONNA – Active in Florence around …
See original version (French)
Estimate €20,000 - €30,000
Voluntary lot
Description
MASTER OF THE LAZZARONI MADONNA – Active in Florence around 1370
THE VIRGIN AND CHILD ON A THRONE flanked by two angels, SAINT DOMINIC, SAINT JULIAN, ST PETER, ST JOHN THE BAPTIST on the left, ST JOHN THE EVANGELIST, ST PAUL, ST ANTHONY THE ABBOT, and another saint on the right
Tempera on a gold ground. Egg tempera on a gold ground on a pointed-arch wooden panel, surrounded by a carved and gilded wooden frame in the Gothic style.
Height: 59 cm – Width: 29.7 cm (panel only)
H. 74.5 cm; W. 33.5 cm overall
Previous restorations
Provenance:
- Auction in Paris, Tajan Auction House, Hôtel Georges V, 20 December 1994, lot 2 (Master of the Lazzaroni Madonna). Expert: Eric Turquin, hammer price 290,000 francs.
The Virgin and Child are seated on a raised throne set against a rich drapery unfurled in the background and held in place by two angels. On either side of the throne, eight saints are arranged in two rows of four. As Professor Mina Gregori suggested at the Tajan auction, the execution of this small panel—intended for private devotion, the artist’s favoured subject—must be attributed to the Master of the Lazzaroni Madonna. This painter was active in Florence during the second half of the 14th century. The work’s Florentine origin is further supported by the presence of Saint Julian, who was particularly venerated in the Tuscan city at that time.
This anonymous master owes his conventional name to a Virgin and Child formerly held in the Lazzaroni collection in Paris, and subsequently in the Weitzner collection in New York (see D. Shorr, *The Christ Child in Devotional Images*, New York, 1954, type 29 Florence 5), before joining the Kisters collection in Kreuzlingen. Initially identified by Richard Offner as the ‘Master of the Two Madonnas’, this painter’s artistic identity was subsequently clarified by M. Boskovits (Pittura fiorentina alla vigilia del Rinascimento, Florence, 1975, pp. 239–240, no. 169, figs. 413–416). Boskovits dates his activity to the final third of the 14th century, within the stylistic tradition of Andrea Orcagna, and subsequently that of Andrea da Firenze and Cenni di Francesco, with whom he collaborated on a fresco in the Town Hall of San Miniato.
Orcagna’s influence is predominant here in the deliberate negation of space and in the hieratic treatment of the figures’ lines. This rigid style is, however, tempered by vivid colours and the shimmering ornamentation of the garments, drapery and carpets.
Condition: On the reverse, cracks in the panel and traces of open galleries made by wood-boring insects. Painted surface: flaking, wear and restoration.
Expert: Stéphane Pinta, Turquin gallery (viewable by appointment at the expert’s office)
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
Pictures modified on 10/14/2026 at 7:29 PM
Lot description modified on 10/14/2026 at 7:29 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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